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Embraer

Embraer (ERJ), the Brazilian maker of commercial and executive jets, was recently named “Company of the Year” by Exame magazine and one of the top places to work in Latin America. With the introduction of the second generation of its E-Jets program at the Paris Air Show in June, Embraer is going to be very busy for the remainder of 2013 and well into 2014.

Embraer expects to deliver at least 51 commercial jets in the second half of the year, and stands to be equally busy with its executive jets. Overall, it has a firm order backlog of $17.1 billion, its highest level since the third quarter in 2009.

Embraer expects to generate between $5.9 billion and $6.4 billion in revenue in 2013. Should it hit the top-end of its projection, its revenues will have grown by 15% year-over-year — a startling success given the market. In terms of profitability, Embraer expects to generate earnings before interest and taxes of at least $530 million and possibly as high as $610 million with EBIT margins between 9.0% and 9.5% — higher than either Boeing (BA) or EADS (EADSY).

One big change for Embraer that could propel it forward is its move to capture more sales from the aircraft leasing business. While Boeing and Airbus both generate about 35% of their backlog from companies like International Lease Finance, Embraer only snags about half that percentage. In its Q2 conference call, CEO Frederico Curado suggested that its E-Jet’s 75 seats would be the perfect plane for regional airlines interested in building their fleets through leasing rather than direct purchase.

While I consider Boeing the cream of the crop when it comes to aircraft stocks, Embraer — with its E2 E-Jets set to hit the market in 2018 — will prove to be a very resilient competitor in the years to come.